Shloka 2
कपिलगोसंवादे गृहस्थ-त्यागधर्मयोः प्रमाण्यविचारः
Kapila–Cow Dialogue: Authority of Householder and Renunciant Dharmas
भीष्मजीने कहा--राजन! धर्मके विषयमें जाजलिके साथ तुलाधार वैश्यकी जो बातें हुई थीं, उसी प्राचीन इतिहासका दिद्वान् पुरुष यहाँ उदाहरण दिया करते हैं ।। वने वनचर: कश्रिज्जाजलिननमम वै द्विज: । सागरोददेशमागम्य तपस्तेपे महातपा:
bhīṣma uvāca—rājan! dharmaviṣaye jājalikena saha tulādhāra-vaiśyasya yā bātāḥ (kathāḥ) abhavan, tam eva prācīnam itihāsaṃ vidvān puruṣā iha udāharaṇatvena vadanti. vane vanacaraḥ kaścid jājalir nāma vai dvijaḥ; sāgaroddeśam āgamya tapas tepe mahātapāḥ.
Bhishma disse: “Ó rei, os homens eruditos citam aqui como exemplo um antigo relato acerca do Dharma — o diálogo que outrora ocorreu entre o brâmane Jājali e o mercador Tulādhāra. Nessa história, um brâmane chamado Jājali, vivendo como habitante da floresta, foi à região do litoral e empreendeu austeridades severas, pois era um grande asceta.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma frames Dharma through an instructive precedent: the ancient dialogue between an ascetic Brahmin (Jajali) and a householder-merchant (Tuladhara). The verse signals that ethical insight is to be sought through exemplary narratives and that Dharma can be illuminated across different social roles.
Bhishma introduces an old story as an illustration. He begins by describing Jajali: a Brahmin living in the forest who travels to the coastal region and undertakes intense austerities, setting the stage for his later encounter and discussion with the merchant Tuladhara.